Bridging the skill gap in healthcare

It is time to wake up from numbing neglect to radical reforms in healthcare. Introducing right initiatives will go a long way and transform the health status of the nation.Updated: April 06, 2015, 20:45 IST

The common problem in both the above issues is how to bridge the skill gap that now exists.

Problem Number One:

Hospitals in India are bursting at their seams. The country has one government hospital bed for 879 people on average. According to records in the Lok Sabha, India needs nearly six lakh hospital beds to reach the target of 500 beds per 10,00,000 people as per the goals of the 12th Plan.

> The doctor-to-population ratio of India is an abysmal 6.5 to 10,000 against a global average of 14.2.> India’s nursing and midwifery density is 10 per 10,000 of population, against a global average of 28.1.> Density of hospital beds per 10,000 populations is just 9 against a global average of 30.

Reasons: > The course duration of medical studies is very long. By the time a person becomes a fully fledged doctor and starts earning, he earns less than his other counterparts of same age who are in some other profession.> Less government medical colleges and less number of seats at the post graduate level.> Many medical colleges fail to maintain quality in education.

Solutions :

> Use technology to bridge the gap. India jumped one step by moving from desktops to handheld devices, skipping laptops, in the Information Technology sector. A similar skip is needed in healthcare by using apps and devices for better patient care and management.

For example, the smartphone is becoming the future of medicine as most patients can be “surgically connected” to one. The smartphone is also becoming a sensor to help people take better control of their health by tracking it with precision.

Companies have started hooking medical devices to the computing power of smartphones. Devices to measure blood pressure, monitor blood sugar, hear heartbeats and chart heart activity are already in the hands of patients.

Withings, a French start-up, has developed a blood pressure cuff that connects to an iPad or an iPhone.

> Use of Kalam-Raju Tablets is an example of how India has used Information Technology to effectively track and manage health care in rural areas. Similar tools are available in the prevention and management of lifestyle diseases. All this can free doctors to see more patients, especially in urban areas.

> Use of remote diagnosis and patient care using IT. The best example is telemedicine and teleradiology.

> Better private and public sector partnerships.

Problem Number Two :

> India faces an acute shortage of over 64 lakh skilled human resource in the health sector. Allied health workers: According to a report of the National Initiative for Allied Health Sciences (NIAHS) “From Paramedics to Allied Health Professionals: Landscaping the Journey and Way Forward” released in December 2012 , there is a gap of 20.42 lakh dental assistance-related technologists, 18.22 lakh rehabilitation-related workforce, 8.93 lakh miscellaneous health workers and 8.58 lakh surgery and anesthesia-related professionals in India.

> There is also a shortage of around 2.36 lakh medical technologists, 1.98 lakh surgical and intervention technology-related health professionals, 1.28 lakh ophthalmology-related workers, 61,670 medical laboratory professionals and over 19,217 radiography and imaging experts in India according to the health ministry estimates.

> The industry and the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) have gone on record to state that barely 10% of the 30 lakh students,who pass with these degrees every year,are considered employable in today’s competitive world. This is true in the healthcare sector too.

Solutions:> Blending skills with education for employment.> Entrepreneurship development.> Knowledge and creation of wealth.> Inter-disciplinary studies should be taken up by students instead of going for traditional studies.> Using technology to manage multiple patients> Develop Apps for Indian conditions for tracking, monitoring and managing patients.

With immense pride “India Live” celebrated its 10th national conference in Mumbai from 28th February to 3rd March 2019. The conference turned out to be a gold mine of information, with emphasis on academics, education and exchange of knowledge with leaders in interventional cardiology from both India and abroad.